Getting What You Asked For, in an Unexpected Way!

This story happened around 1997/1998 when Phillips introduced their first CD Recorder for public market. I was working a computer show at McCormick Place for Czarnowski Exhibits.  The show used up all three buildings, and lower levels. I wanted to visit the Phillips booth and so did my friend Pete, who was getting excited about computers.

We agreed to meet for lunch at the Phillips booth to get some literature.  But I got trapped at my booth all day (in another building) and could not let Pete know, as we did not yet have cell phones. I knew he would realize something changed and would just get the info on his own.

About 2 o’clock or so, we were finishing up. The last thing that comes up from a booth is the carpet. So I knelt down, stretched my arm to lift the carpet, and I was in a position to watch the large back dock opening with heavy plastic curtains being forced inward by a strong gust of wind. I stared, as all over the convention hall papers started flying, spiraling, hundreds of thousands, as I watched surprised, still with my hand opened to lift up the carpet– and then some piece of paper hit my palm, and I instinctively closed my hand.

Of all the thousands of papers and bits of litter flying with the wind, the one that flew into my hand was about the Phillips CD Recorder. But that was not all!  As we were waiting for the final check out from the boss, another fellow named Jimmy comes up to me, and says, “You know about these kind of things.”   I looked at what he was holding out to me. He said, “One of the clients used this for demonstration.”   I asked, “Was it Phillips?” As if I knew.

He said, “No, it’s another client, but they can’t use it again because it has a dent. I wonder if you can use it.” I confirmed that Jimmy didn’t want to keep it for himself (he didn’t).

And that was how I got my first Phillips CD recorder.